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TMI Blog1979 (10) TMI 193X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... High Court, the Tribunal and the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and hold that so far as the ornaments and other articles of gold purchased by the assessee are concerned, they were liable to be taxed at the general rate of 3 per cent under section 5A read with section 5(1)(ii) of the Act and so far as G.I. pipes sold by the assessee are concerned, we remand the case to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner for the purpose of deciding on the basis of the existing material as also such further material as may be adduced, whether G.I. pipes sold by the assessee fall within the description "water supply and sanitary fittings" so as to be exigible to sales tax at the higher rate of 7 per cent under entry 26A. - Civil Appeal No. 2422 (NT) of 19 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... se goods do not fall within this entry and are taxable under section 5A read with section 5(1)(ii) of the Act. The other question relates to taxation of the turnover of sales of G.I. pipes effected by the assessee and it raises the point whether G.I. pipes sold by the assessee fall within entry 26A in the First Schedule to the Act, which reads "water supply and sanitary fittings". If they do not fall within this entry, the turnover of their sales would be liable to be taxed at the rate of 3 per cent under section 5(1)(ii) of the Act, but if they do, then the rate of tax would be 7 per cent. The Sales Tax Officer, and in appeal the Appellate Assistant Commissioner, decided both the questions against the assessee and taxed the turnover of pur ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... egislature their popular sense meaning "that sense which people conversant with the subject-matter with which the statute is dealing would attribute to it". The word "bullion" must, therefore, be interpreted according to ordinary parlance and must be given a meaning which people conversant with this commodity would ascribe to it. Now it is obvious that "bullion" in its popular sense cannot include ornaments or other articles of gold. "Bullion", according to its plain ordinary meaning, means gold or silver in the mass. It connotes gold or silver regarded as raw material and it may be either in the form of raw gold or silver or ingots or bars of gold or silver. The Shorter Oxford Dictionary gives the meaning of "bullion" as "gold or silver in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ncy and if that be the true meaning, it is obvious that ornaments and other articles of gold cannot be described as "specie". It would thus seem clear that the ornaments and other articles of gold purchased by the assessee do not fall within entry 56 and they are, accordingly, liable to be taxed not at the lesser rate of 1 per cent applicable to "bullion and specie" but at the general rate of 3 per cent under section 5A read with section 5(1)(ii) of the Act. That takes us to the second question in regard to taxability of the turnover of sales of G.I. pipes made by the assessee. The revenue contended that G.I. pipes fall within the description "water supply and sanitary fittings" in entry 26A so as to be exigible to tax at the higher rate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ase would, therefore, have to be remanded to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner for the purpose of determining whether having regard to the meaning which this Court has placed on the expression "sanitary fittings", the G.I. pipes sold by the assessee fall within that description. But the revenue contended that even if the G.I. pipes are not "sanitary fittings" within the meaning of that expression, they would still fall within the description "water supply.........fittings". Now, it must be remembered that the category of goods in entry 26A is not described as "water supply pipes" but as "water supply and sanitary fittings". The use of the word "fittings" suggests that the expression is intended to refer to articles or things which are ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t Commissioner for the purpose of determining whether, in the light of this meaning placed by us on the words "water supply.....fittings", the G.I. pipes sold by the assessee could be said to be "water supply.......fittings". We, therefore, allow the appeal, set aside the orders made by the High Court, the Tribunal and the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and hold that so far as the ornaments and other articles of gold purchased by the assessee are concerned, they were liable to be taxed at the general rate of 3 per cent under section 5A read with section 5(1)(ii) of the Act and so far as G.I. pipes sold by the assessee are concerned, we remand the case to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner for the purpose of deciding on the basis of th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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